


hayfever

by sheriffandsteel



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Canon Universe, F/M, Gendrya - Freeform, axgweek20, just some pointless fluff right here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:28:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25700605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sheriffandsteel/pseuds/sheriffandsteel
Summary: Spring returns to Winterfell and with it comes a foe not even Arya is equipped to face.Seasonal allergies.
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters
Comments: 15
Kudos: 105





	hayfever

**Author's Note:**

> written for axgweek day one 'return of spring'

The sun wasn’t even at its highest point in the sky and she’d already sneezed more times then she could count today. 

Arya sniffled and ran her handkerchief under her nose. It was just a plain cloth, not one of the fancy ones some of the children in the castle practiced embroidery on and that her sister had been so found of growing up. Arya had a stockpile of the fancy ones, crooked hems and the letter ‘A’ stitched in the corner. The songs of her slaying the Night King followed her across the sea and back and now it seemed that wherever she went, the moment people learned her name their eyes went wide. She tended to be showered with gifts and tokens more often than not. 

Thankfully, she’d been in one place for long enough now that the people who saw her everyday no longer looked at her with reverence, more of a fondness. That fondness could have been from anything really; the fact that Arya taught women and children how to fight and defend themselves, the fact that she had helped set up a school for the smallfolk to learn how to read, the fact that her arrival had been the first time any of them had seen their lord smile. Really the fondness could have been from any number of things, her killing the Night King didn't have to be the only reason people liked her these days. 

Sneezing _again_ Arya tried to stifle a groan into her handkerchief. Her eyes were itchy and her head felt like it was going to explode and given how many times she’d sneezed that day it seemed like it was trying too. 

“Are you sick m’lady?” a familiar voice spoke behind her and Ayra turned to glare at Davos. He ignored her glare as he always did but he did crack a small smile at her as he amended, “I meant to say, are you sick Arya.” 

Her head was aching too much to chide him for using the moniker she told him at least twice every moon not to use. At least Davos tried not to call her it, nearly no one else in the castle would listen to her no matter how many times she told them to call her Arya and promised she wouldn’t be mad about their lack of decorum. A few of the workers had started to just not call her anything at all which worked for her and some of the children were starting to call her by her name but only if they weren’t in earshot of their parents. 

“It's the plants.” Arya sniffed, turning to glare at the offending grove to their left. Storm’s End didn’t have a lot of greenery, most of their land was craggy and rocky but a few plants were strong enough to survive the cold and the sea winds. Now that winter had finally released her clutches and spring had returned, the plants Arya had been sure would never bloom again were slowly coming back to life. Arya hadn’t even been able to enjoy the sight of green living things for a day before the sneezing had started. 

“Ah, yes there was a plant on Dragonstone that gave me the same problem.” Davos said falling into step with her as Arya headed across the courtyard. 

“How’d you make it stop?” Arya asked, wiping her aching nose as she sneezed again. 

“I didn’t.” Davos admitted ruefully, causing Arya to groan. 

“What are you bothering my wife with now Ser Davos?” a voice that sounded far too cheerful for that question asked. Arya turned her head to watch as Gendry approached them, looking between the two of them with a slight wrinkle between his brows. 

“I was just informing the Lady Arya.” Davos began and Arya resisted the urge to kick him at the moniker, “That I don’t know of a way to make her sneezing stop.” 

Gendry turned his eyes onto her, concern filling every bit of them. “It's still going on?” he asked in surprise as if her bright red nose wasn’t a sign enough. 

Arya huffed and tried to glare at him but unfortunately, she sneezed again and ruined the effect. At this point she felt like she spent half her waking time sneezing and a good portion of her time asleep too according to Gendry. 

“It won’t stop.” she sniffled, annoyance lacing her voice. This was getting out of hand; she had no idea how she was supposed to teach her sword fighting lesson that afternoon if she had to keep a handkerchief in her hand the whole time. 

Gendry looked at her fondly as Davos excused himself and headed back into the castle. Arya huffed and sat down on a nearby bale of hay, sneezing as her movement made some dust puff up. 

“Anything I can do to help?” Gendry asked, sitting down beside her and nudging her arm. Arya sniffed and pulled a new clean handkerchief from her pocket. 

“Burn all the plants down.” Arya mumbled into the cloth to hide her smile when Gendry laughed. 

“I don’t think many people would like that.” Gendry admitted, bumping her arm again until she turned to look at him in fond exasperation. “But if that’s what you wish I’ll do it.” 

Despite how much her eyes itched Arya rolled them at him. “Your people would revolt.” she joked knowing full well that the people of Storm’s End loved their new lord enough to forgive him for burning the few scraggly plants that grew there. 

“A small price to pay to make you happy.” Gendry argued although he was smiling so Arya knew that he was just teasing. Which was good because despite how miserable she felt she didn’t really want to burn down the plants. Anything that fought that hard to survive deserved too in her opinion. 

Arya nudged Gendry’s arm before she sneezed so violently she nearly fell off the haybale. 

“Seven hells.” she cursed sniffling yet again. Arya looked up to see Gendry smiling at her goofy. “What?” she sighed. 

“I never thought I’d see the great Arya Stark like this.” Gendry admitted, ignoring Arya's sharp jab to his ribs at the title. She’d almost gotten the grooms to stop calling her that, she did not need it to start back up again. 

“Like what?” Arya snapped as she sneezed. “Like a sneezing mess?” 

“No.” Gendry shook his head before he paused and seemed to think it over. “Well yeah actual-hey!” he cried in mock outrage as Arya shoved him off the hay bale. He laughed from the ground as she stood up and glared down at him, the image ruined slightly by another ill-timed sneeze.


End file.
